Darik followed in Jarett's footsteps, and TD record for siblings is in sight

Jarett (top) and Darik Dillard ﻿will become the top-scoring brother duo in NCAA history if Darik scores twice against Army on Saturday.

Jarett (top) and Darik Dillard ﻿will become the top-scoring brother duo in NCAA history if Darik scores twice against Army on Saturday.

Photo: Rob Foldy, Stringer

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Rice wide receiver Jarett Dillard celebrates his 18-yard touchdown reception from Chase Clement against Western Michigan in the fourth quarter of the Texas Bowl college football game over Western Michigan at Reliant Stadium Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008, in Houston. Rice beat Western Michigan 38-14. ( Brett Coomer / Chronicle ) less

Rice wide receiver Jarett Dillard celebrates his 18-yard touchdown reception from Chase Clement against Western Michigan in the fourth quarter of the Texas Bowl college football game over Western Michigan at ... more

Photo: Brett Coomer, Staff

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Rice wide receiver Jarett Dillard celebrates his 18-yard touchdown reception from Chase Clement against Western Michigan in the fourth quarter of the Texas Bowl college football game over Western Michigan at Reliant Stadium Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008, in Houston. Rice beat Western Michigan 38-14. ( Brett Coomer / Chronicle ) less

Rice wide receiver Jarett Dillard celebrates his 18-yard touchdown reception from Chase Clement against Western Michigan in the fourth quarter of the Texas Bowl college football game over Western Michigan at ... more

Photo: Brett Coomer, Staff

Dillard brothers make Rice history one score at a time

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Jarett Dillard didn't want his little brother Darik to go to Rice.

The former Rice football All-America receiver didn't want his brother, who is eight years younger, to forever be known as "Jarett's brother."

Call him Mr. Clutch. Call him Old Faithful. Call him Mr. Reliable. Call his name when the game is on the line.

Record in sight

Through two years and six weeks of his college career thus far, Darik has scored 20 touchdowns. Nine of those touchdowns came in the fourth quarter. Four came in the final 4:05 of a game. Three of them pulled the Owls ahead. One of them tied the game. His first touchdown of his collegiate career came in 2013 against Florida Atlantic and led to a 27-26 Rice win.

On Saturday when Rice hosts Army at 11 a.m., Darik could make NCAA history. If he scores a touchdown, the Dillard brothers will tie the record for the most combined touchdowns by brothers, a mark currently held by Houston-area natives Jacquizz and James Rodgers, who played at Oregon State. Jacquizz scored 51 touchdowns, and James had 30. Jarett Dillard is the NCAA record holder for the most receiving touchdowns, with 60.

Both Dillard brothers have scored multiple touchdowns against Army. Jarett scored five touchdowns in two meetings. Darik scored two last year at West Point.

Two against Army this year would break the record, and it would come on the same day that Jarett is being inducted into the Rice Athletics Hall of Fame for his playing career from 2005-08.

"If he does do it, it'll be great timing," Jarett said. "I don't want him to feel like that's what he has to do."

If Darik does tie or break the record Saturday, it wouldn't be because of some competition he had with his big brother. Jarett used to drop him off and pick him up from his elementary school in San Antonio. Their relationship was built on brotherly fights but also brotherly love and respect. Darik took every chance he got to learn from Jarett, but he didn't really understand what Jarett was doing while he was at Rice.

"I just knew that Rice going to bowl games meant that we got to go on trips to watch him play," Darik said.

What he did understand was his dad's reaction to Jarett's play.

"Seeing my dad's reaction of 'Yes, son,' " Darik said. "I just knew, 'Yeah I want to do that for him, too.' I want to make my dad feel like that as well. I want to make my parents proud."

Always accountable

Together, they've learned about each other. Darik is into classical music. Jarett is a "firecracker," in Darik's words. Jarett realized just how much Darik is someone who can be counted on as a teammate.

"Being the younger brother, he's never been the guy who has to be counted on for anything," Jarett said. "It was always my mom, dad, sister, then me and then him. Very rarely is it going to be him that needs to come through on this or that."

Throughout the last three years, though, the Dillard family has watched Darik do what his father preached from a young age: It's not about luck, but preparation meeting opportunity.

"We've seen him in situations where he's had to make a decision, make a play, do something, and he's made the right decision," Jarett said. "He's made the great play. He's changed the outcome of the game or the presumed outcome."

'You did it again'

The latest example was on Oct. 10 against Florida Atlantic. This season, Darik wanted to really be known as a sure-hands guy who would make a catch when the team needed him most, so he worked throughout the offseason with roommate and wide receiver Dennis Parks on the Jugs machine.

Against FAU, Darik caught the game-winning touchdown with 2:07 left in the game.

"It wasn't a big shocker to me," Parks said of the touchdown. "I know what he's capable of, but it was more a sense of relief, like 'Thanks Darik. You did it again.' "

Darik isn't known around Rice as Jarett's little brother anymore. In fact, members of the football program have begun to call Jarett "Darik's brother."

That's just fine with Jarett.

"He's shown enough in the last three years," Jarett said, "that he deserves the title of his own."